Horse-detacher



(No Model.)

- J. N. SMITH.

Horse Detaoher.

No; 24!,08i. Patented May 3,1881.v

ulTm VIIIIN; mm

a; nllmllllllliiml UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN NASH SMITH, OF DALEVILLE, VIRGINIA.

HORSE-DETACHER.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent N0. 241,081, dated May 3, 1881.

Application filed February 26, 1881 To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, J. NAsH SMITH, a citizen of the United States, residing at Daleville,

in the county of Botetourt and State of Virginia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Horse-Detachers; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters or figures ofreference marked thereon,which form a part of this specification.

My invention relates to a device for detaching vicious or runaway horses from the vehicle, to prevent injury or accident; and the novelty consists in the construction and arrangement of parts, as will be more fully hereinafter set forth, and specifically pointed out in the claims.

To save life or limb in the persons of the occupants of a vehicle, it is of the greatest importance, in certain emergencies, to detach'from the vehicle the draft-animal; and to accomplish this with ease and certainty by means of simple and efficient mechanism is the object of this invention.

To enable others skilled in the art to which this invention appertains to make and use the invention, I will describe its construction and mode of operation, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a side elevation, partly in section; Fig. 2, a plan view with the clamp open, and Fig. 3 a detail view.

Referring to the drawings, in which similar letters of reference indicate like parts in all the figures, A represents the thills, of any ordinary construction, upon the cross-bar a of which is secured, b y bolt and nut a, a cl amp-frame consisting of the perforated plate B and the rectangular portion B, perforated at b and I), the bolt to operating through the hole I) and the hole in the plate 13, and a bolt, 0, having a nut, c, and carrying an oscillating trigger-arm, C, perforated at c to receive a cord or strap, 0 operates through the perforations I) in the rectangular portion B.

Hinged at d to the clamp is asemi-cylindrical locking-cap, D, having upon its interior surface a projecting pin, (1, and a terminal arm, D, slotted at (1 to correspond with the form of the trigger-armO, over which it passes, and by which it is held in a locked position.

The cap D is designed to hold and embrace tightly the central portion of the whiffletree (No model.)

E, which is made in two parts by an oblique dividing-slot, and for convenience I will designate one of these parts by the letter E, which part has a perforated plate, 6, upon its outer surface at a point approximating the center of the whole, which perforation receives the pin cl, and is also provided with a similar plate, 0, upon the face of the beveled end, which receives a pin, 0 upon the adjacent beveled face of the part E The devices 0 6 hold the beveled faces'arbitrarily in fixed position in relation to each other, and the devices 01 c serve the same purpose in holding the tree in the clamp from lateral displacement.

Upon the thills is secured a spring holdbackstaple, F, which, while it serves efficiently to resist a backward strain from the holdbackstraps, allows the said straps to slip freely under the spring'arm f when it is desired to liberate the animal and a forward strain overcomes the force of the spring.

The operation, from the foregoing description, is obvious. The parts being in set position, and it being desirable to liberate a runaway horse, the driver pulls the strap 0 The trigger-arm oscillates until the cap is liberated and flies back. The whiffletree is loosed and divided, the animal springs forward, the holdback is released from the spring-arm, and the freed animal is not subject to the danger of a whiffletree striking his heels.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

l. The divided whiffletree E E the former of which is provided with perforated plates 0 c and the latter with a pin, 0 combined with a detaching device having a pin, (1, as and for the purposes set forth.

2. The hinged cap D, having pin (1 and slotted arm D d in combination with a divided \vhiffletree, E E c, and a trigger-arm, O, and strap 0 as and for the purposes set forth.

3. The combination of the clamp B B, divided whifiietree E E having perforated plates 0 c and pin 0 the clamp-cap D D, having pin d and slot (P, the trigger-arm O, and the spring-holdbacks, all constructed and arranged to operate as and for the purposes set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JOHN NASH SMITH.

Witnesses:

J AS. E. PACE, JAMES ROWLAND. 

